Dance With Cupid
by Ryee
Summary: When an arranged marriage makes Gippal Rikku's bodyguard, she realizes that there's something more to this marriage. Why is Gippal doing the job for free, and who exactly is Rikku set to marry?
1. Drifting Peace

DISCLAIMER: Final Fantasy X-2 and all related characters belong to Square-Enix. I own all other characters in this story that aren't from S-E.

**Rating: PG-13**

**Pairing: RikkuxGippal**

**Genre: Romance/Drama/Comedy**

A/N: At last, another fanfic has been revealed. This one will be equivalent to my other story, "Waiting Between Memories" in terms of drama and on a similar level—length. I've wanted to do something like this for a long time now, so all I can say is that I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I know I'll enjoy writing. RikkuxGippal fans will be very pleased, I hope.

* * *

**Dance With Cupid**

_By Ryee_

The young girl looked up at her mother expectantly, her youthful eyes shining with wonder. She watched as her mother sat down in the chair, tugging on a wayward strand of her golden hair.

"But Mommy! You promised me that you'd tell the story!" the little girl cried. She stamped a foot down as the small sound echoed on the metal flooring of their home.

"I know, I know. But sweetie, how many times have I already told you the story?" the mother smiled. Her little girl pouted.

"I dunno, Mommy. But I…" she paused a moment to climb onto her mother's lap. "…I think it's such a great story…"

The young woman laughed, brushing away her daughter's bangs and looking into the swirls of her green eyes. "Okay, okay," she smiled, much to the delight of the little girl.

"I knew I'd win!" her daughter squealed triumphantly. Her mother laughed at that point. The girl was just like herself at that age.

"But you know, darling, I've told you this story so many times that you already know how it ends!" She hugged her daughter warmly, much to the child's delight.

"I know, but it's still such a pretty story. And it's so roman…roman…"

"Romantic?" her mother offered, giggling at her daughter.

"Yeah! Romantic! That's it! I remember learning that word in school the other day," the little girl said with a grin.

"So, where shall I begin?" her mother asked gently as they settled down into the chair. The girl put a finger to her mouth before smiling slowly.

"The beginning of course!" she finally responded, causing her mother to laugh even more.

The woman had told her daughter the story countless times. So many times, in fact, that she had lost count. It was a story that she remembered all too well, one that she was able to recall as clearly as what she had for breakfast that day. The tranquil sky, warm desert air, the laughter, sorrow, joy. She leaned back in the soft chair and closed her eyes as her daughter snuggled against her.

"_If I were to tell you that there is someone out there that was born in order to find you, protect you, and love you with his entire being, then I would have just told you the first of many truths. If I were to say that the journey to find him is easy and will not make you cry, then I would have just told you the first of many lies. _

_I didn't realize this when I was young, and I thought that I would never fall in love. To tell you the truth, I was even…afraid. At the time, I couldn't quite explain the reason why. Maybe deep down, I was frightened of being alone one day. Afraid of falling so deeply in love that if he were to one day leave me, I would never be able to find myself again. _

_Your grandfather and I had never been close enough for me to talk to him about these things, but your two Aunts were always there. The three of us went on so many fun and exciting adventures together that I thought the days would never end. Those were some of the greatest moments of my life._

_When I was 19, your Grandpa came up to me with a strange look on his face. At the time, I figured it was to tell me that I had another dangerous mission to do, but I was wrong. Instead, I learned that the rest of my life had just been decided completely, and all the plans I had made for myself had disappeared completely._

_I was shocked. I remember even losing my balance at one point, and was convinced that it was an early April Fool's joke. But I was wrong again.

* * *

_

A small piece of crumpled paper landed on her desk, causing her snap awake again. It was the second paper that had flown in her direction in the span of one hour. The instructor had been droning on and on for the last 75 minutes and she had been fighting to stay awake before the white paper flew in from her side. Peeking up at him, she watched as the instructor turned around to write on the board again.

Stuck in math class. The worst subject of the day.

She looked down at the note knowingly, shaking her head in amusement as she did so. Unfolding it, she read the messy handwriting.

_Careful not to fall asleep, Ms. Rikku. You leave yourself open for people to ogle you. (smily face)_

She felt eyes on her back and slowly turned around to see the familiar young man in the back. Her classmate winked at her, his other eye hidden by the spikes that came down one side of his face. A sudden blush began to creep across her cheeks and she quickly spun back to face the front.

"Does he have to look at me like that…" she whispered under her breath.

"Is there something you'd like to add to the discussion, Ms. Rikku?" the instructor's deep voice boomed. She looked up slowly as he raised an eyebrow from his position in front of the room.

"U-Uh, no. Nothing, Sir," she replied slowly, her face heating up even more. She could feel the eyes of everyone in the class on her.

"I would assume that you would have something to say since you did score exceptionally high on the previous examination, Ms. Rikku," the instructor continued.

Rikku paused as she heard some of her classmates around her whispering. She looked around at them quickly and scratched her head nervously. "Ahaha. W-Well, I wouldn't say I did that great…"

"Oh? You don't consider getting a perfect score on the exam great?" her instructor laughed.

"Wow, Rikku. I didn't know you were that smart!" one of the class clowns beside her exclaimed. She glared at him before slapping him on the shoulder. The class laughed.

"Alright, alright. That's enough, class. Let's continue with the lesson," their instructor finally said.

Rikku slumped back down in her chair, staring at her notebook full of mathematical calculations. She groaned inwardly and checked the time. One more hour left in this awful class. Not that she didn't mind getting high scores. In fact, she thought it was a bit comical that she was still able to get good grades despite her daily boredom in the class.

It had been a year since the whole ordeal with Shuyin. She had decided to go back to school to get more training in order to become a Mission Officer. She was tired of taking orders from people and figured that she was good enough to start taking charge of others for once.

Naturally, Cid was against it. She was 19, and in his eyes, it was time for her to think of settling down with a husband. Rikku made a face at that thought. She was 19. All the more reason NOT to get married.

* * *

"Yo, Rikku. Wait up!" a voice called from behind her. She turned and felt her face heating up again as she looked up to meet the familiar intense gaze. 

"Uh, h-hey Kai," she greeted, standing with her arms clasped behind her back. Her hand gripped her bookbag tightly.

"Hey there, Ms. Smartypants," Kai teased. He fell easily into step beside her as the two of them headed down the hallway. "I hope my little note earlier woke you up," he laughed.

Rikku looked up at him and smiled shyly, remembering the crumpled papers from class. Distantly, she remembered that they were inside the pocket of her skirt. "Well, it actually got me into some trouble back there, mister," she replied, sending him a playful glare.

Kai raised an eyebrow curiously. "Huh? Why?"

She shifted her schoolbag to the other hand and shook her head. "Nevermind, um…forget I said anything," she smiled weakly at him. _Only because the instructor heard me whispering about you._

He stopped walking, hands in his pocket. His head was tilted slightly to the side as he smirked. "You weren't mumbling about me back there or anything, were you?"

A bubble of laughter suddenly escaped her lips and she shook her head quickly. "What! Of course not! Why the heck would I be thinking of you!"

Kai laughed, his voice rich. She soon found him standing beside her, leaning down a bit to look at her face. "I didn't say that you were _thinking_ about me, Rikku."

Face flaming, she stepped back and away from him suddenly, noting his confused but adorable expression. "W-Well, I gotta go now! I'll see you tomorrow then! Er, uh, later Kai!"

And with that, she walked quickly down the hallway, leaving the 20-year old confused and just as equally amused. He watched her retreating back curiously before heading down the opposite direction.

Rikku mentally slapped herself as she sped quickly off the school grounds. "Well that was a graceful exit…geez…"

The sun was setting in the horizon as the last students began to exit the campus grounds, herself included. The academy wasn't her first choice, but it was near her house and would allow her to become a mission officer in less than 2 years.

Yuna and Paine were surprised when she had announced her decision to go back to school. Her cousin had moved to Besaid for good to start up a little magic school with Tidus, Lulu, and Wakka. They wanted to educate the children about the history of Spira, magic, and what everything meant for the future. It was a life that Rikku had imagined Yuna to have after all the adventures were done and over.

Paine traveled back and forth between cities in order to ensure that the people of Spira could live in peace. Even with Vegnagun and all the threats removed, there were still people who couldn't let go of their grudges. Because of this, Paine worked with Nooj and Baralai to restore peace to Spira for good.

Her thoughts were quickly halted by the sound of someone approaching her from behind. Whoever it was, he or she must have wanted to really catch up since the steps sounded quick, rushing to reach her. The rocks crunched beneath the person's boots as Rikku turned around.

She immediately paused at the figure before her.

"…Oh, um…hi," she greeted plainly, sighing with relief after seeing who it was.

He frowned at her for a second, but was smirking nonetheless. "Hm, and I thought you'd be happy to see me. Guess not," he shrugged with feigned exaggeration.

Rikku giggled a little, continuing in the direction of her home. "Sorry, didn't mean to sound rude or anything." She swung her bag to the side as they walked. Up above, the sky was streaked with orange and yellow hues, the sun retreating for the day. Their two shadows cast a reassuring presence beside them as Rikku looked down.

"Never thought the day would end, eh?"

She turned her attention to him as she paused in mid-thought. "Oh, yeah. Classes were boring as usual…" Rikku raised her arms to stretch. It had been one unusually long day. Sometimes classes would go by quickly, but for some reason they felt unnecessarily lengthy that day.

Apparently, the young man beside her had also been thinking the same thing.

A thought came to her at that moment. "Hm...why'd you come to this academy, anyway?"

He chuckled at that, regarding her lazily with one eye. "What? Am I not good enough to be at this school or something?"

It had surprised her when the instructor had introduced him to the class during engineering just a week ago. She remembered doodling in her notebook just as the door slid open. Not bothering to look up, Rikku had instead focused on the little rabbits she had been drawing. Once the instructor had asked the new student to introduce himself and she heard his familiar voice, her head had shot up.

"Hey, good to meetcha. I'm Gippal," he had introduced himself.

"Please show him around if he needs help, class," the instructor said. A few of the girls in the class had begun to whisper about how cool they thought Gippal looked, and Rikku couldn't help but smile a little herself.

She had watched as he took the seat next to Kai. From her position in the room, she was just in the row beside him and two seats up. Rikku averted her gaze the moment he had looked up at her. The corner of his mouth had turned up ever so slightly when he saw her that it surprised him when she had looked away.

Surprisingly, no one in the class recognized him. It didn't matter that he had the title of being the leader of a faction under his belt, or the fact that he had been involved in the fight against Vegnagun.

Nope, Gippal was just Gippal at this academy.

Rikku rolled her eyes at his question, already accustomed to the blond man's usual arrogance. "I meant that this is a school for future officers. I didn't think that you'd need to come here with your position and all…" she trailed off as he stopped in front of her with a grin. Her eyes met his. "Ever think for a minute that I came here for another reason?"

She felt her mouth open slightly, completely caught off-guard by his words. "What do you mean?"

"Rikku, I can't believe that Cid still hasn't said anything to you yet." He raised his eyebrows.

"Huh?" she shook her head in confusion. A little boy chasing his dog ran quickly past them as she regained her thoughts. "Sorry, Gippal, but I really don't know what you mean."

A shadow of understanding crossed his features momentarily as Gippal paused. She watched as he kicked up some gravel from beneath his boots. He seemed to be in deep thought as a few more seconds of uncomfortable silence hung between them.

"Are you being followed by anyone here?" came his question in a hushed whisper.

His question came out so quickly that it took Rikku a few more nanoseconds to see if she really had heard it. "W-What?"

"Kai…the guy I saw you with earlier in the hall. Is he always near you or something?" Gippal asked again, crossing his arms and standing with his weight on one leg.

"I uh…" she couldn't go on after that, realizing that this was happening too fast. "…wait, why does that matter? He's just someone from class. I guess I sorta think he's cute too, but what difference does it make?" Rikku said with a nervous laugh. It was her turn to cross her arms at him.

Gippal felt a sudden twinge within himself at those last words, but he shrugged it off quickly. "Alright, I won't say anything more," he shook his head, his words coming out slowly. "Just come talk to me once Cid tells you everything," he said as an afterthought, resuming his usual cocky demeanor. "Come on, I'll take you home."

* * *

"Thanks, I can make it from here, y'know," Rikku said cheerfully, looking up the rest of the way towards the house. It had been a while since either of them had said a word, so she decided to break the tense atmosphere. 

He seemed to search her eyes for a moment before finally nodding. Sending her a short smile, he had turned his body halfway around to head back down the path before Cid came up to greet them.

"Oh, Rikku. You're home already?" her father said, looking at his daughter before shifting his attention to the other young man beside her. He held a stack of folders in one hand and a commsphere in the other.

"It's pretty late, don't you think, Pops?" Rikku asked, surprised that her father would ask her such a question. It was almost dark outside. Something wasn't right with his tone of voice either, and the fact that Cid had kept his eyes on Gippal for a few extra seconds made her believe that there really was something wrong. "Okay…what's going on here?" she finally asked them.

Cid looked at Gippal again and the blond sighed.

"Rikku, I—"

"That's alright, kid. I'll tell her myself," Cid interjected quietly. He beckoned for the two of them to follow him into the house.

Rikku stared after her father with worry and confusion but followed after him nonetheless. She was surprised when Gippal trailed after her also.

"Have a seat, Rikku," Cid commanded quietly once they had entered the study. Gippal closed the door behind him and sat down as well.

Ok. There really was something going on here and it began to make her nervous. Her father hardly ever referred to her as "Rikku."

"You're already 19," Cid began after sometime. She simply raised an eyebrow in confusion but nodded. "I've been doing a lot of thinking about your future, and I finally figured it all out."

Her father's words made her palms a little damp with nervousness. She smoothed out the hem of the skirt of her school uniform, licking her lips with apprehension. Looking up, she saw Gippal avert his gaze immediately after she had rested her eyes on him. It was strange. He seemed to always avoid her eyes lately.

He was seated on a sofa opposite her as Cid gazed out the window with his back towards them.

"You're set to be married this spring to the son of the Yuvera family."

Rikku felt her heart come to a winding stop. Wait, what did he just say…? Surely, Cid did not just say "marriage." She stood up shakily, recognizing the family name. "Y-Yuvera family? But aren't they in charge of the 'New Home' development?"

Cid turned around to face her slowly. His face had deep wrinkles as he regarded his daughter. "Yeah, they are. Which is why this would be good for you…for all of us…"

She opened her mouth in preparation to scream and protest as loudly as possible. But instead, her knees had decided to give in, and Rikku found herself falling back onto the couch behind her. Her father looked up, eyebrows set and mouth in a firm line.

"No…you've gotta be joking, right...? But…why?" she managed to whisper.

Cid didn't blink as he clasped his hands tightly behind him. "In order for us to get back on our feet, I need to re-establish our family name. This was the only way, Rikku. I'm the only one with the original plans for Home. No one else can build it but me."

"But what does any of this have to do with me!" Rikku exclaimed, her voice finally increasing in volume. The flare had returned to her eyes as she slammed her fist into the sofa.

Cid ignored her outburst. "In exchange for my involvement with the program, the Yuveras thought it would be best if the two families joined. In their eyes, my original plans for Home would make them twice as successful. Of course, we needed a way for the two families to join…"

"…and you figured that I'd be the perfect solution. Way to go, Pops. I appreciate how you asked me first!" Rikku interrupted.

"What the hell did you want me to do! You realize that your brother is out there trying to make a living for us again!" her father shot back. She fell silent after that, frowning and looking down at her boots.

Gippal sat helplessly across from them, his jaw set and his hands tightly folded. He had his own thoughts on the matter as well, but chose to keep his mouth shut.

After what seemed like a lifetime of utter silence, Cid finally spoke up. "I'm sorry…"

Rikku stood up and walked to the large window. Below, she could see the same little boy from earlier as he chased after his dog. After seeing them disappear over the hill, she turned around to face them again.

A fixed marriage in order for the family to recover from the recent debts that Cid had incurred.? Why now of all times, and why her? Right when she had decided to go back to school to take charge of her own life and become a real officer. She looked up at Cid's face, shadows and wrinkles dominating his expression. Somehow, he looked older than she remembered, perhaps with all the stress he'd been under the past year.

If there was one thing Rikku didn't want to see, it was whenever someone near her was in pain, in trouble, or both. Sure she fought with her father and disobeyed him countless times as a child and during her early teenage years, but the way he had approached her today, and the current situation her family was in, made her realize that perhaps it was time to start seeing the bigger picture for once.

_If I were to get married, I would help Pops and Brother with all their problems. I'd be helping our whole family… _

"I have some questions."

Her father took this as a surprise and sat down in the armchair. She had been silent for a long time when her announcement came suddenly.

"But first, I just want to say that I'll think about all this because I care about you guys and I don't like seeing ya hurt…" she trailed off after that. Okay, so that wasn't the whole truth. Her father had put an enormous amount of pressure on her. She knew that Cid would be nothing short of disappointed if she thought of declining. But it wasn't as if she had a choice, right?

Cid looked down, trying to hide his surprised expression from his daughter. He had predicted that she would run away from home after hearing the news, screaming about how it was her life and how he had no right to interfere.

"So my first question is when do I meet this guy I'm supposed to marry?" Rikku's face was expressionless and her eyes held no glint of feeling. Gippal looked away from her at that statement.

"Whenever you're ready. I hear he's at Luca right now."

Cid and Gippal exchanged quick glances.

She nodded slowly before looking up at the fiery sky, the first stars peeking from underneath the fading reds and yellows. "And second, what does he have to do with this?" she asked as she turned back around.

Cid's gaze shot up at that, seeing that Rikku was referring to the young man in the room. Her father rubbed the back of his head, trying to put it into the right words. "Well, he's here to guard you."

Her eyes widened at that. "Wait, why do I need a bodyguard, and why him of all people!" Rikku demanded.

"You need 'im because people will now try to kidnap you for ransom since you're the key to the Yuveras' multi-million Gil project," Cid replied simply. He gestured in Gippal's direction. "And I chose him because he's willing to do the job for free."

She raised an eyebrow as Gippal met her gaze for the first time since they had entered the study. "For free…?"

Gippal leaned back, folding his hands behind his head and shutting his one good eye. "That's right."

Rikku made her way over to him and jabbed a finger into his chest, startling Gippal. "Listen, you. I want to know the truth. There's no way someone like you would do this without anything in return," she narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

She had him cornered this time. What person would guard another for months without some type of payment in return? The wedding wasn't going to be held until that spring, which was months away.

"Ever think that I'm doing it just 'cuz I want to?" Gippal asked smoothly. He smiled at her sideways.

"Nope. I never thought of that once. In fact, I'm even more suspicious of you now," she answered quickly. His smile faded but he was still sitting on the sofa with that same arrogant position, his face full of confidence.

She had to admit that having someone like Gippal as a bodyguard would not disappoint. His appearance alone was enough to keep the boys away. She blinked, realizing that she was acting as if she had already agreed to the marriage.

_I've really lost it, haven't I?_

"Hey, Pops."

Cid looked up, his eyes shifting and sending her a silent "What is it?"

"Let's say I refuse the marriage." At this statement, both Cid and Gippal widened their eyes and sat up in their seats. She took note of their expressions and pressed on undaunted. "Could you at least give me some time to think about all this?" she asked instead.

Her father let out a long sigh. "Take as much time as you want. I told the Yuveras that I needed at least a week before you'd give an answer."

Rikku was surprised. "You mean you already expected me to wait things out?"

"Of course. Who else would know his own daughter?" Cid replied calmly, heading towards the door. She watched his retreating back for a moment before looking down at the floor.

"Oh, and Rikku."

Her gaze went back up.

"When you do tell me your answer, find yourself a good dress for when we go out to dinner with the Yuveras." Cid had stated it as if the only answer Rikku could give him was a "Yes."

Her expression fell a little and she nodded, even though her father had already left the room.

The door closed quietly and Gippal sat studying the blond Al Bhed for a moment. She simply stood there, her hands in front of her as if she was playing with something, a habit he knew she always had. Standing up, he walked over to her.

"Come with me for a minute." His voice was warm, a strong reassurance for Rikku's cloudy mind. She looked up at his stern face as he came over and led her out of the room, his hand gently gripping hers.

She didn't resist him as Gippal opened the front door of the house and stepped out into the warm air. The stars had dotted the skies with a shimmering brilliance as they walked down the path towards town.

Normally, she would have protested against going out that night. But to be honest, a large part of her just wanted to get away from the house and from reality, if only for a few hours. Thankful for the time being, she let Gippal take over.

It was strange though. Even if they weren't especially close, she had always felt unusually comfortable whenever she was with him. As if they had known each other for years.

"Where are we going?" came Rikku's quiet voice after sometime had past.

He didn't turn around to look at her.

"You feeling okay?" Gippal asked instead, choosing not to answer her question. When she didn't reply, he turned around to glance back. She tugged gently on his hand and they both stopped walking.

"Thanks, Gippal. But I think I just wanna head back home and go to sleep. I've had a long day and I kinda want to get my mind off things for a bit…"

He simply watched as she continued her sentence in a quiet voice, seeming like a completely different Rikku than what he was used to.

"Sounds to me that you're not alright at all," he informed her, his tone firm. He paced a little before turning in her direction to see her expression. In the dark, he could barely see her face, her features only outlined by the light of the moon behind them.

"No, really. I'm fine. Thanks for everything today." She paused for a moment, looking up at him and smiling. "I've kept you here long enough, so I'll just see you at school tomorrow." She turned around.

For a few agonizing moments, Gippal had to fight against his gut instinct. If he let her go now, who knew how long it would take before he could speak with her privately like this again. But a part of him was telling him to just shut the hell up.

And so, he simply watched as she headed back up the hill and towards the house, cursing himself as he walked in the direction of his own apartment.

* * *

**End of Chapter 1.**

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this first chapter and made you all a little curious about what exactly is going on. Sorry, but you'll find out the truth later on in the story!


	2. Spira Fantasy

A/N: Thanks for the first reviews, everyone. I will refrain from answering some of your questions since they will all be answered in the story. It's difficult to set up everyone's personalities in just the first chapter, so if you think Rikku seems emotionless or something else, don't be worried just yet. I plan to put more emphasis on character development in this story.

Sorry that it took so long to get this chapter released!

**Chapter 2: Spira Fantasy**

Despite her apparent removed attitude the night before, Rikku felt awful. No, scratch that. She felt lost, confused, pressured, and frankly, going to class right now was the last thing she wanted to do.

She lay in bed dressed in pajama shorts and a shirt, an arm covering her closed eyes. It was 6 AM and engineering class started in two hours. She hadn't gotten a wink of sleep during the night either and had awakened before her alarm clock had even went off.

She paused, turning on her side as she gazed out the window, seeing the first signs of dawn.

What would happen if I ran away from here?

Her mind went over the list of things that would possibly happen if she opted for that route. Cid would eventually track her down. He'd yell at her until midnight of the following day after her capture, and would forever be disappointed in her.

Thoughts of Cid caused her to frown, her fists grasping the sheets beneath her with enough force to make her knuckles white. How dare he make a decision like this! The anger that she had been biting back before returned full force, and it made her feel even more terrible.

"No way am I doing it," she said angrily, throwing the sheets off.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, she emerged from her bedroom dressed in her school uniform and ready to go. It was strange style was becoming more and more popular again. The schools thought it was a great way to earn some extra money since it required students to purchase uniforms from them alone.

She glanced at Cid's closed bedroom door with scorn and headed quickly down the stairs and towards the kitchen. Grabbing a bagel from the container, she headed back into the foyer as she slid on her shoes, throwing open the door.

"Whoa, uh…morning…"

A very surprised Gippal looked down at her as she held the bagel in one hand, a chunk of it taken out and currently being chewed in her mouth. He had one hand raised prepared to knock on the door before she had flung it open instead.

Stepping past him, she pulled the door shut behind her. "What are you doing here?" she asked in a low whisper.

He shrugged. "Cid wanted me to start the job today."

"Right..." For some reason, his announcement made her feel even more rotten. She narrowed her eyes at him, shaking her head. "Wait a sec, I haven't even accepted this stupid marriage yet!"

Gippal shook his own head. "Listen, it doesn't matter. From this point on, people are out to get ya. You're not entirely free from people knowing who you are…unlike me."

She stared at him as if he had suddenly grown another head. "Like who? Who's out to get me?" Her voice sounded tiny even if her face was neutral.

He began walking down the path towards the campus with Rikku trailing behind him. She glanced at Gippal shortly and the expression on his face seemed like he was fighting against saying something. He kept looking from side to side with his one good eye.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I'm not sure who might be out there, but my job is to protect you," he announced suddenly, ignoring her last question.

Rikku didn't say anything more after that. There were a lot of strange things about this entire situation. Along with the complete absence of any other choice but to marry the Yuveras' son, there was also the issue of Gippal.

Cid had mentioned that he was protecting her free of charge. Rikku wasn't stupid. There was obviously something else going on that she wasn't aware of.

She stopped walking, catching his attention.

"What's wrong? Why'd you stop...?"

She studied his expression for a moment. "I won't believe for a second that you're doing this job without getting paid," she informed him, crossing her arms tightly across her chest.

His mouth curved into a half-smile as he leaned most of his weight on one leg. "Then what do you believe, Rikku?" He let her name roll off his tongue carefully.

"What! No, don't turn this question around on me, Gippal!" she exclaimed, frustration getting the best of her. All that pent up anger from earlier this morning had reared its ugly head once again.

He was a little surprised at her outburst, noting the way her skirt had flown up slightly to show more of the tanned skin of her leg. One of his eyebrows arched and he fought to keep one side of his mouth from curving upwards. If he was going to be spending time with the spunky girl from this moment on, he figured that getting to know Rikku's spontaneous moods would help amuse him a bit…if he knew which buttons to press.

"So…I guess we're going to be seeing a lot of each other from here on out, huh?" Gippal spoke up, turning the subject around for the second time that morning.

Rikku shook her head. "No, we're not." He paused to glance down at her. "No," she repeated again. "My dad has no right to make a decision this big! I mean, marriage! What on Spira was that old man thinking!"

There it was again. The outburst of anger. He decided to try something different. Letting out a short sigh, he looked over at her.

"Alright, I'm going to put myself in your place for a minute." She paused at the statement.

He began walking idly up and down the path, Rikku's green eyes following his form. "If I were you, I'd be nothing short of pissed if I found out my dad arranged a marriage for me. I mean, damn. To think that all that pressure would be on me to say yes? And if I didn't agree? Who knows how the dad would react. I'd be disappointing him, there's no doubt 'bout that. Kicked out of the house even."

She didn't say anything, her mind silently nodding at everything he was saying. Well, except the part about her dad telling her to get out of the house. The thought had crossed her mind quickly when she couldn't sleep last night, but had passed quickly. Would she get kicked out of the family? What exactly _would _happen to her if she didn't agree?

Gippal rested a hand on her shoulder, bringing her attention back to him. "You okay?" he asked.

Rikku nodded slowly. "Yeah..."

"So…what do you plan on doing?" he asked again after some time.

What did she plan on doing? Hell, now was not the best time to ask that. When she didn't say anything, Gippal simply nodded.

He looked down at this watch. "We better get going."

She nodded, finally arriving at the decision that she would tell Cid exactly what was on her mind that night.

* * *

Kai looked up as the classroom door slid open and the petite blond entered. He excused himself from the conversation he was in the middle of and began to weave between desks in her direction. His step seemed to lose its bounce when he spotted a young man following close behind her.

"Gippal, I think you don't have to hang around anymore," Rikku whispered uncertainly as she looked up at him. She didn't want to sound rude, but it still did no matter how she said it.

"Huh? Why?" He paused, not bothered by her statement. "Wait, don't tell me that you really aren't getting married—"

"Well what did you expect me to do! You didn't actually think that I was going to agree to the marria—"

"Morning, Rikku," Kai spoke up, glancing at Gippal momentarily. They both paused, looking up.

Gippal nodded feebly as Kai stopped beside them. He regarded Kai with his good eye for a few moments. "I'm not interrupting anything important, am I?" Kai asked Rikku with a short laugh.

She shook her head. "No, nothing important." Her eyes landed on Gippal for a moment. He met her gaze fully, as if silently telling her that he wasn't about to leave her alone.

"So uh, do you two know each other?" Kai asked, obviously referring to Rikku's relationship with the other Al Bhed.

"You could say that," Gippal replied quickly in her place, causing the female Al Bhed beside him to close her mouth. She had been ready to reply before he had spoken up instead.

"Weren't you the student who transferred here last week?" Kai continued on.

"That's right. I guess you could say that I'm the new kid around here," Gippal answered, one hand gesturing in the air. Rikku recognized the way his attitude had taken up its usual cocky air. He was partly joking, but at the same time, seemed to challenge Kai to speak up.

Kai looked intrigued. His attention turned to Rikku again for the first time in a while. "It seems like you two already know each other from somewhere else."

"Uh, ahaha…well, um, we actually do know each other from a while back…" Rikku agreed slowly. She tugged on a braid absent-mindedly, offering a small grin to the men. Gippal felt a corner of his mouth moving upward at the way Rikku had remembered their history together. She wasn't looking at him though.

"Really." Kai seemed even more interested in the conversation now, and Gippal couldn't help but wonder why exactly this guy still hadn't left. He was obviously attracted to Rikku, but anyone could have spotted that from a mile away. It didn't take Gippal long to realize that. He'd done the same with girls when he was younger. Just the way Kai had spoken to her, and the way he looked at Rikku was a dead giveaway.

Gippal watched as the two of them exchanged small talk for a little while as if he weren't there. He remembered what she had told him yesterday about Kai after class when he had walked her home.

"_I guess I sorta think he's cute too…"_

A part of him wondered if Kai was the reason why Rikku was so against the marriage. Perhaps she was also attracted to him. But obviously, she was the type of girl who wanted to do things her way at all times, so Kai wasn't the only reason she wanted to stay single for now. It was like that for a lot of people their age these days though. Making your own decisions and building your own life the way you wanted.

No, her unwillingness stemmed from much more than that. Something that he couldn't quite put a finger on yet.

He shook his head, realizing that his thoughts had drastically shifted directions. His job was to watch Rikku. Nothing more.

Clearing his throat, he brought their attention back to him. "Kai, if you'll excuse us for a bit." Gippal didn't say anything more, but began heading towards the door. She looked at him in confusion before his eyes had caught hers as he had turned around.

_Man, what does he want this time?_

"I'll be right back, Kai…" she smiled apologetically. Standing up, Rikku followed Gippal out into the hallway.

"What happened?" she asked, the moment he had slid the door shut.

He looked away from her shortly. "I asked you about Kai yesterday. You know, if he kept following you. Well, I think I know the answer now that I've seen you two."

Rikku laughed suddenly, much to his surprise.

"W-What's so funny?" Gippal asked, genuinely swamped with confusion. _She _was laughing at _him?_

"You're such a dork, Gippal. I mean, he _obviously _follows me around because he _wants _something from me," she stated, crossing her arms.

He had his mouth open, but shut it, scratching the back of his head. "Well, that's obvious, don't ya think?"

It was her turn to frown. "What?"

Gippal smiled sideways, trying to choose the right words. "Rikku, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but in case you don't know, someone like you would attract a guy like Kai. It's plain and simple."

She nodded. "Yeah, Gippal, I know that all he wants from me are test answers. It's pretty obvious."

He paused, realizing that they had been talking about two completely different things. Holding up his hands in defeat, he turned away slightly to hide his smile.

"…No, I actually didn't mean that…"

"Huh? Then what did you mean?" Rikku asked, raising an eyebrow.

Letting out a long sigh, he shook his head in amusement, raising a hand to pat her head.

"Nevermind, Cid's Girl. Nevermind…"

* * *

Rikku stood outside her house, knowing that Cid had already been home for hours. She took a deep breath and nodded once, telling herself that if she didn't do this now, there wouldn't be a better opportunity.

School had flown by quickly that day. Much faster than she was ready for. Just like yesterday, Gippal had walked her home. Neither of them had talked about the marriage, but she was grateful for it. He waved goodbye to her as she stopped in front of her house, and here she was now.

Gripping her bag tighter, she took long strides up the stairs to the porch, letting one hand hover over the doorknob. She noticed that her heart was beating faster and her breathing had increased. Steadying herself one last time, she opened the door and stepped into the house.

"I'm back!" she called out.

"Rikku, would you come here for a bit?" came Cid's reply from the study. She paused. There was tension apparent in his voice as he used her first name again.

Setting her bag down in the chair near the front door, she took off her shoes and made her way down the hall, her mind going over all the things he could have possibly wanted to speak with her about. Naturally, the only logical topic was for Cid to ask her about her decision to marry.

She opened the door and stepped inside the office.

"What's up, Pops." She wasn't smiling, and her voice had lost its youthful cheer. Cid noticed this in her almost immediately. He couldn't begin to imagine the amount of pressure he had placed on his daughter, and he could see it on her face and hear it in her voice.

"Rikku."

There it was again. That odd foreboding that his voice carried whenever he used her name.

"I received a call from the Yuveras this morning," Cid continued. He looked up in time to see the glint of interest that passed over Rikku's face. "To make things short, they want to meet us for dinner tomorrow night."

"Wait, but I haven't given an answer yet…" she paused as her father spoke up again.

"Yeah, but they'd like to talk about other things with me, so along with you getting a chance to finally meet their son, I have some business to take care of," Cid explained, resting his elbows on the desk.

Rikku chewed over this information for a moment. She had lost some of her gusto from earlier about telling Cid that she wasn't going through with this marriage.

"Am I really needed to make New Home possible?" she decided to ask instead. Cid didn't seem surprised nor angered by her question. A heavy silence passed over them for a long time.

She waited before he spoke up.

"Listen, I…" her father began. He took a deep breath. "The only reason this whole marriage thing came up was because I wanted you to marry into their family. That at least would help us out financially…"

She froze.

"What…? Are you saying that you could have easily just sold the plans to the Yuveras without me getting involved!" Rikku exclaimed. She took a few steps towards Cid's desk.

He looked away. "You're damn right I could have just sold these plans for Home to them. But think about it." His eyes turned to her, as if pleading. "If you married into their family, that'd be a good life for you. You wouldn't have to worry about—"

"Is that the only thing you're thinking about! Money? What in Spira is wrong with you?" Her question caused Cid to stop.

"I want you to really think about your future. If you want a stable one where you can live comfortably, the Yuveras can give you that."

She shook her head at that. "No, Pops. I want _you_ to listen to me for a second." That seemed to catch his attention, and she felt stronger. "There's nothing I can't do on my own. Who said I wanted to have everything fall magically into place for me? I want to do things on my own. Not have someone give it all to me."

Her explanation came out a little differently than she wanted to, but it said everything that was on her mind. She always knew that her father was old-fashioned, wanting her to settle down early. That's the kind of life her mother had lived with her husband before passing away. Cid had given her everything.

Rikku never dreamed that her father would be willing to convince her to abandon independence completely to marry some rich guy.

"I guess it never even crossed your mind that I didn't even know this Yuvera guy either," Rikku added.

Cid remained silent for a long time after that. He opened a folder in front of him, and looked through some of the papers there. They were the blueprints for the original Home. After it seemed like he was finished with her, Rikku headed towards the door, pausing a bit.

"…What time is the dinner, anyway?" she asked.

Her father looked up. "Huh? What, you're going?" He seemed very surprised.

She crossed her arms and realized it was the best thing to do.

_Maybe I can find out more about what's going on here._

"Yeah, I'm going. But I'm not changing my mind, y'know! I'll only show up to see what this family is like and so that you can talk about how you're going to sell your plans."

The way his daughter said it made Cid close his mouth and stop whatever it was he was about to say. He glanced up as she opened the door to leave.

"Rikku."

She paused, not turning around.

"7 o'clock tomorrow night."

* * *

**End of Chapter 2**

It's time to introduce the Yuvera's son in the next chapter! But who exactly is he?


	3. Incognito

A/N: So many kind reviews from everyone! I thank you very much. It means a lot to read your comments, and I'm glad I had most of you trying to guess who the son was. Will you find out who he is once and for all in this chapter? Maybe!

**Chapter 3: Incognito**

Rikku looked down as a familiar piece of paper landed on her desk. It was the first one that day. Glancing up to see if the instructor was looking, she gingerly unfolded it.

Huh? It's from Gippal… 

She noticed the messy scrawl immediately. Curious, her eyes quickly scanned the message.

_I heard you were going to the dinner tonight._

Rikku blinked, a little surprised that he knew. Her father must have told him about it. Heh, figures. Of course Cid had. Taking out her pen, she wrote him back and folded the paper up. Looking behind her to where he was in the next row, she dropped the note in the aisle between them.

Kai glanced up from his notebook as he saw Rikku pass a piece of paper to the new kid.

Bending down, Gippal picked up the note and read it.

_I guess Pops told you._

_Well, I didn't agree to anything…I just wanna_

_see what this family is like._

He looked up from the note as she glanced back at him momentarily. Mouthing a silent "Why?" to her, she simply shrugged in response. She pointed to her watch and the door, and he understood her right away.

Behind them, Kai watched with genuine interest, his gaze never faltering. He was intrigued.

* * *

Rikku stood outside the classroom in the hallway twenty minutes later, waiting for Gippal to get out. She had finished their examination early. Leaning back against the wall a bit, she swung her book bag idly from side to side, periodically glancing up at the classroom door.

A few more minutes passed, and the blond Al Bhed finally exited. He let out a long sigh as he slid the door shut behind him. Rikku couldn't help but raise an eyebrow as she pushed herself off the wall and made her way over to him.

"What happened? You look like you just failed it…!" she laughed.

Gippal waved a gloved hand through the air. "Pfft. Me? Of course not. I was stuck in there 'cause some girl wanted to have lunch with me."

"Oh…really?" Rikku asked slowly, surprised by his response. He merely shrugged and let out a short chuckle. They began walking down the hall, students rushing past them in a flurry of blue and gold, their school colors. She brushed away a stray bang as she looked down at the floor.

"Yeah. I mean…normally I woulda probably agreed and everything. But, she just wasn't my type," Gippal spoke up, running a hand through his hair. He looked ahead.

Rikku let out a short laugh, drawing his attention for a moment.

He smirked, looking down at her. "What's so funny?"

She shook her head. "It's just that everyone at this school is blond, Gippal. What do you expect from an Al Bhed school?" she giggled again.

He grinned. "That's not what I meant."

"Huh?" This time, it was her turn to look at him. She could have sworn that Gippal was the type of guy who liked a girl because of appearance alone. She was wrong? "What do you mean?" Rikku voiced her thoughts.

Gippal shook his head and pulled the door open for them as they reached the end of the hallway. The main quad lay beyond, and the hot sun engulfed her almost immediately. She stepped past him and went outside first, turning around to hear his answer.

"I meant _personality_. I don't like women who try to sweet-talk their way into things or who think that they can get away with anything by just looking cute," he stated simply, causing Rikku's eyes to widen a bit.

I guess he's just full of surprises today… 

She didn't reply, simply nodding. He didn't seem to notice that she had chosen not to respond.

They made their way to the dining commons with comfortable silence, and sat at a small table next to a window overlooking the campus quad. After a waitress came to take their orders, Gippal turned to her.

"So, have you picked out what to wear yet?"

She looked in his direction for the first time in awhile. Rikku realized that she had already agreed to go to the party without remembering that she didn't really have anything to wear. At least, no dresses for special occasions like this. How long has it been since she went to a real dinner party anyway? Hm, this might actually be the first time in her life.

She simply shook her head.

"Actually, I hadn't really thought of anything," she laughed weakly.

He grinned, leaning back in his chair casually. "You do know what type of party it is, don't you?" Gippal asked, his eyebrow arched.

She paused, setting down her glass of water. "Um, isn't it just a dinner party?"

The waitress bustled back to their table before Gippal could respond, her delicate hands holding their plates of food. Rikku couldn't help but catch a scent of the aroma. She was starving.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," the waitress smiled at them both, putting down their food. She tossed back a lock of her golden hair, wiping her hands on her apron before rushing back into the kitchen.

"No problem," Gippal replied politely, offering her a short smile.

After they had settled in, Gippal turned to Rikku again to answer her question from before the waitress had arrived. "Actually, it's not just a dinner party."

Glancing up from her pizza, Rikku frowned. "Huh?"

"It's actually a masquerade party," Gippal replied simply, looking up from his food as well. "That's why I was curious about what you were going to wear."

Rikku stopped chewing for a moment, finding it strange that people in this day and age were still having masquerade parties. She never knew the Al Bhed to have parties like that in general, but she assumed that the upper class must have done things differently.

She paused, realizing that she was strictly going to the Yuvera's party on business. At least, in order to do a little investigation of her own. Rikku glanced at Gippal. He was busy working on his sandwich.

"Hey, Gippal."

He looked up, still chewing. "Hmm?"

"Are you…um…well, are you going to be at the party tonight also?" she asked, strangely feeling self-conscious and not being able to look him in the eye. She mentally slapped herself for her silliness.

_Whoa, calm down._ _This is Gippal we're talking about! _She shook her head a bit to get a hold of herself.

Putting the last piece of the sandwich into his mouth, he licked his fingers before giving her a reply. "Well, I have to. It's my job, you know," he smirked.

Rikku looked up at him then, offering him a short smile. "O-Oh, right. Of course…"

He regarded her curiously. "Why? What's the problem?"

She waved her hands in front of her. "A-ah, no, nothing's the matter. I was just curious, that's all…"

"Why? Afraid of someone attacking you or something?" he interjected slowly, leaning across the table towards her. He wore a playful grin.

"W-Well, you did say that people were out to get me or something, right?" Rikku answered smoothly, unperturbed by the way he was looking at her.

He leaned back in his chair again, suddenly becoming serious. "Yeah, that's why I'm gonna be there tonight."

* * *

"Mommy, mommy! Someone's at the door!"

Pausing and looking up, the woman picked up her daughter gently and set her down in the chair, making her way over to the front door and opening it. A postman dressed in a blue uniform greeted her, his soft brown eyes accentuating his friendly smile.

"Good day, Miss. Delivery for you," he informed her, picking up the box that was on the ground and handing it to her."

"Oh! I wonder who it's from…" the woman said to herself, signing her name quickly on the paper that the postman handed to her.

"Mommy? Who is it?" her little girl called out from behind her. She stepped into view with a mix of worry and curiousness on her young face.

"Have a wonderful day," the postman winked, walking down the front steps. The woman closed the door behind her and peeled off the simple white card that was attached to the front of the box. She turned to her daughter.

"Want to open it, darling?" she smiled, knowing what her reaction would be. Right on cue, the little girl squealed but nonetheless took great care in opening the present. The woman looked on as her daughter opened the flaps, wondering what exactly was inside herself.

When the colors finally came into view, the woman smiled knowingly, a wave of memories washing over her again for the first time in years. Her daughter looked up from the box.

"What is this stuff, Mommy?"

She smiled. "Your father still has a way of surprising me when I least expect it."

"It looks pretty!" the girl replied, pulling out the items and feeling the cloth between her fingers. "So shiny…"

Suddenly, she looked up at her mother. "Oh! I know what this is! It's from the story!"

The woman smiled and nodded, sitting down in a nearby chair. She continued the tale as her daughter sat at her feet, putting various objects from the box on her head or around her neck. Her mother smiled warmly.

* * *

"Hm…what if I just show up in normal clothes?"

He looked at her strangely, a smile tugging at the edge of his mouth. "You mean your normal skirt outfit?" He paused for a moment to visualize Rikku in the yellow top and short skirt ensemble, his mind silently urging her to wear it, even if he knew it wouldn't be right for the party. But he was a healthy young man, right?

He noticed that he had taken a few seconds longer to respond, his mind lost in his wild thoughts. "Actually, that wouldn't be such a bad ide—"

She hit him on his arm in mid-sentence, seeing that gleam in his eye. He winced.

"No…!" Rikku protested, crossing her arms at him. He scratched the back of his head with slight embarrassment. "I mean…you know. Like just a nice dress?" she continued.

Gippal chewed this over for a moment. She awaited his answer as if his word alone would decide what she would wear at the dinner that night. A few moments of silence passed before he shook his head firmly, apparently coming to a decision. "Why don't we just get one o' those simple white masks right now? You have some dresses for tonight already, right? So all we need is a mask."

Rikku laughed nervously. "U-uh, actually…"

He looked up.

"…actually, I don't think I have any of those fancy evening gowns or anything either. I-I mean, this is my first time going to something like this and everything…" she admitted, scratching the back of her head with a small grin.

He checked his watch, a thoughtful expression on his face. Behind them, the sky had become a bright yellow-orange, hues streaking the horizon. "We have a little under two hours left before this thing. How much Gil do ya got on ya?"

Rikku opened her bookbag and pulled out her Gil purse. "1700." She frowned as she said that, realizing that 1700 Gil was barely enough to buy a decent set of gloves.

Gippal reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of coins, quickly adding up the amount. "I got 2100." He took the purse from her hand and dumped his Gil into it. "This has gotta be enough to get you somethin' right?"

She tried to grab the purse back, but he held it up in the air and away from her grasp. "W-Wait a sec, Gippal. I can't just use your money!"

He chuckled as she jumped to try and snatch the purse back from him. But, to no avail. He towered over her.

Huffing in frustration, she crossed her arms tightly across her chest. "You really can't do this, y'know. It's…" she hesitated. "…well, it's just not right."

Gippal laughed at that point, swinging the purse with two fingers. "Why? What's so bad about splitting the cost of a dress?" He asked her the question as if the answer should have been obvious.

Rikku paused. He was obviously trying to get her to go to that dinner party no matter what. The question was why. It was all too strange. When was the last time any guy had ever agreed to spend thousands of Gil on her? Hm…probably never. She turned to him.

"Alright. Let's go then."

Gippal grinned at the way her mood seemed to change. "Wha-"

"The dress. We should get going. Y'know…we have about 2 hours left, right?" She tucked a strand of hair firmly behind her ear and began heading into town. If he wanted to spend the Gil on her, she would certainly not refuse.

He quickly caught up to walk beside her.

"Right."

* * *

"Rikku…what in blazes…hurry up!" Cid hollered.

She groaned, twisting her body madly around in front of the mirror as she tried to look behind her. Whoever designed dresses like the one she was presently tangled up in deserved every curse word she could think of. How dare they put a zipper in such a spot! Her arms could only twist so far and—

"I'm goin' on ahead!" her father finally exclaimed from the first floor. "Hey, kid. Make sure she gets to the party. I'm countin' on ya!"

The front door slammed with an essence of finality, and as Rikku peaked down below from her bedroom, she saw Gippal climbing up the stairs, his eyes widening at her disheveled appearance, one strap of her gown falling off. Her back was bare as the opened dress flapped wildly in her attempt to run back into her bedroom.

Gippal rolled his eyes as her door shut loudly. "Don't tell me you're not ready yet," he shook his head, leaning against the hallway wall.

"Of course I'm not ready yet! This damn zipper won't go up!" she exclaimed from behind her door.

He couldn't help but grin. A few muffled sounds came from inside her room and he could hear Rikku dashing across the floor and opening and closing drawers.

"Need some help?" he offered after a few minutes.

"NO!" she immediately answered.

He grinned.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Gippal looked up from the magazine he had been reading. He had moved into the living room, tired of waiting. With his mouth open ready to tease her, he stopped short as she walked into the room cautiously.

"This is stupid," she said self-consciously, tugging at her newly-done hairstyle. It hung in loose waves, spilling about her shoulders and falling to her lower back. Her eyes were brighter, the green orbs standing out even more. The dress was a lovely shade of yellow, the color accenting her features nicely. She hardly resembled the spunky Al Bhed he was so used to seeing.

"Um…Gippal?" Suddenly, she was standing right in front of him, her face inches away from his. "Are…you alright?" she asked in confusion.

He blinked, abruptly standing up and waving a hand dismissively in the air. Clearing his throat, he smiled sideways. "Took you long enough."

She reached down and picked up the mask that had been sitting at the coffee table. "Wait…are you going dressed like that?" She ignored his comment. Rikku pointed to his normal flashy attire. He looked down at himself and smirked.

"Oh, right. Well, I'm getting ready later."

The hallway clock began chiming, and Rikku's gaze flew in its direction. They had exactly half an hour to get to the party.

"Oh, no! We better hurry up. We still gotta find this place!" Rikku exclaimed, scrambling to find her shoes.

Gippal headed for the front door casually, Rikku trailing behind him as they stepped into the warm evening air. "Don't worry. I know where the place is, remember?"

Her steps faltered, and she frowned. "Oh…right…"

* * *

"I hear Rikku is doing an excellent job at the Academy," Firul Yuvera remarked thoughtfully. His brightly adorned hand held the champaign glass delicately. Beside him, his wife raised an equally-adorned hand to her chest, her bell-like laugh floating about the air.

"Is that so, darling? My, I'm even more interested in meeting this young lady," Ruminnia Yuvera smiled at her husband.

Cid grinned nervously at them. "W-Well…that Rikku…she does her best," he said, taking a sip out of his own glass.

The Yuveras smiled warmly, nodding. "I like your daughter already. Not many young ladies out there can handle that school, Cid." He put down his glass and glanced around the large ballroom. "Has she not arrived yet?"

Cid looked around as well. "I'm sorry about this. I guess she might have had some trouble finding this place," he scratched the back of his head.

Rumminia smiled, waving a hand. "Not at all! The party has just started. I'm sure Rikku will be here soon. It seems our son has not made an appearance either," she added thoughtfully, looking around the room herself.

"Where is that boy, anyway?" Firul remarked, slightly annoyed.

* * *

Rikku stood outside the mansion, its towers rising high in the air. A large fountain sat in the main courtyard and she could hear the laughter and music from within the walls of the house.

"Whoa…this place…is amazing," she said to no one in particular. "Man, Gippal, I can't believe that—"

She stopped short, realizing that her blond companion was nowhere to be found. "Gippal…?"

Rikku scanned the area quickly, wondering where he could have gone. How rude of him to leave without saying a word. She walked to the side of the mansion to see if he could have gone around to the back of the house.

Without paying attention as she rounded the corner, she bumped rather ungracefully into what was obviously a man, his broad chest suddenly filling her vision.

"Oh, sorry. I wasn't looking and—"

"Rikku…?"

She paused and looked up.

"Kai...!"

* * *

**End of Chapter 3.**

I hope you enjoyed this one! I'll be working on the next chapter shortly, so keep an eye out for it!


	4. Sneaking Operation

A/N: Just wanted to say thanks again for the reviews! It was a little funny how everyone automatically assumed that the Yuveras' son was Kai though! Hm, I won't say anything more. You'll just have to find out. Hehe.

Sorry this took a long time to get up.

**Chapter 4: Sneaking Operation**

After her initial surprise had subsided, she smiled at him hesitantly.

"What a surprise, Rikku. I didn't know that you knew the Yuveras."

She quickly looked him up and down. A formal outfit, a fresh flower neatly tucked in the front pocket of his jacket. In his right hand, he was holding a perfect white rose.

Kai noticed her eyes on him and offered a short smile when she didn't respond. "Did you come alone?"

Rikku blinked, taking a short step away from him. "Oh, um, actually no…" she finally spoke up.

"Really?" He seemed to sound like he was making a statement rather than asking her a question.

She nodded slowly, noticing the grin on his face.

"So…you did…come alone?" he continued to ask, an inquisitive expression on his face.

Rikku suddenly narrowed her eyes playfully at him and crossed her arms. Under the moonlight, she could see the faint outlines of his face. He was smirking at her, his eyes twinkling curiously.

"Hey, mister. Why are you asking so many questions?" she asked.

Kai began pacing around her, looking her up and down. She suddenly felt self-conscious.

"I dunno…wouldn't you be curious if you saw a pretty lady standing outside here all alone?"

Rikku looked down at her feet in embarrassment, losing some of her gusto from before. She assumed that Kai had taken her earlier playfulness as a cue that she was flirting.

Well, I WAS flirting. But I didn't mean to! 

She cleared her throat, regained her composure, and prepared to give him a response. "Well, I guess so." Gippal's smirking face flashed quickly in her mind and she quickly shook her head firmly to rid herself of the image. "Yeah, actually. I did come alone," Rikku said instead.

Kai nodded. "Ah, I see." She could hear the smile in his voice, as if pleased by her answer.

"And are you by yourself, Kai?" she asked as well. If she was going to stand out here waiting for Gippal, she wasn't about to brush off Kai. Although she felt a little guilty for it, Rikku did still find him attractive. Okay, fine. So Kai was her guilty pleasure.

He nodded, interrupting her wild thoughts. "I am."

"Oh…" Rikku replied slowly, unsure of what else she should say.

A few seconds of uneasy silence hung between them. She glanced around the courtyard for a moment before looking up at him again, prepared to say something. It didn't take long before another voice cut her off.

"Soooo…did you wait long?"

Rikku and Kai both paused and turned around in the direction of the question.

Gippal walked casually up to them from the back courtyard, one hand in his pocket. He was fully dressed in a suit that complemented his light features, his boots clicking in the night air. Rikku had almost forgotten that he was actually that tall. She suddenly felt small and powerless standing beside the two men.

"Gippal. I wasn't aware that you were invited to the party tonight," Kai spoke up calmly, holding his ground. He was obviously surprised that the other Al Bhed was there, but the tone of his voice was neutral.

"Well…I wasn't exactly…invited by the Yuveras," Gippal replied smoothly, stopping next to Rikku. He glanced at her momentarily and she simply met his gaze with a confused expression.

Kai looked back and forth between them before realization finally crossed his features. "Oh, so you're here together." His gaze hung on Rikku for a few unnecessary seconds, and Rikku suddenly felt like a liar.

_Well, it wasn't exactly a lie. Gippal and I aren't here "together."_

She looked back at Kai helplessly and smiled weakly. "W-Well, we're not exactly here

toge—"

"Rikku," Gippal suddenly interjected, much to the surprise of both of them. "Cid's waiting inside. You shouldn't keep him waiting, y'know."

"Oh, right…" she trailed off, not quite knowing what more to say. As far as she was concerned, it seemed as if she had lied to Kai about coming to the Yuveras' party alone.

Great…now he'll probably be mad. Whoa, wait. No, maybe he won't… 

Gippal raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? You seem like you don't wanna go in," he chuckled, seeing the hesitation on her face.

She stopped short. "No, that's not it."

"Kai, we're going first. I guess we'll be seeing ya around," Gippal said instead. Although he didn't show it, he knew very well that his sudden appearance had made Rikku fumble with her words a little bit. But Gippal didn't dare admit that he had interrupted the spunky Al Bhed and her tall male companion as he rounded the corner on purpose.

He didn't know why, but Kai just outright irritated him. Gippal knew he had always tried to give people a chance, but there was just something about the other Al Bhed that made him uneasy.

Clearing his throat, he tried to push the unwanted thoughts away. The last thing he needed was to get involved in any type of drama with Rikku, and Kai for that matter. Gippal was simply her bodyguard. He was doing this job because it was required. Nothing more.

Gippal offered his free arm to her, and she slowly accepted, albeit with a hesitant expression on her face.

Kai said nothing as the two headed in the direction of the front entrance. He reached into his pocket for his phone, ready to dial the familiar number as he saw Rikku and Gippal disappear around the corner.

* * *

"Gippal…what's going on?" she asked once they were out of hearing range.

Instead of taking her to the massive double doors leading into the main house, he had walked past the entrance and to the side of the courtyard near the lake. Stopping, Rikku tucked her hair behind an ear and tried to read his expression. A tiny sliver of moonlight allowed her to make out faint outlines of his face, but she could tell that something was on his mind.

"Hey…Gippal. C'mon, my dad's waiting inside."

He turned to her then and seemed like he was fighting against saying something. She leaned forward a bit waiting for him to speak up, but when he didn't, she simply sighed.

"Alright, what's going on. You've avoided my questions. That just isn't like you."

"Rikku…what were you talking about with him?" he finally said.

She seemed a bit startled by his question. "What? _That's_ what's bothering you?"

"Not really. Just curious, that's all."

"Gippal, you really are strange sometimes…!" Rikku shook her head.

He stopped short. "Wait, why are _you_ laughing at me?" It was his turn to raise an eyebrow at her. He couldn't help the slight irritation that leaked from his voice.

She walked over to the railing and leaned on it a bit. "I think the right question to ask here is why you're acting so weird tonight," she continued.

Gippal stared at her for a moment before finally letting out a short sigh mixed with a hint of amusement. "Well, it's not like you answered my question either."

_Oh, so now he's getting smart with me? _

"Fine, I'll answer you. As long as you promise to answer my questions," she said. Despite the light way she was handling the situation, Rikku wasn't the type to back down.

"Okay. So, what were you talking to Kai about?" Gippal repeated immediately.

"…It was nothing, y'know. He just asked if I came to the party with anyone," she told him simply, deciding to leave out the part where she consciously flirted with Kai. Why would she need to tell Gippal _that_ part, anyway?

"You seemed a little too close back there," he replied. Rikku paused, wondering how long he had really been watching them.

"Huh? I don't know what you're talkin' about, Gippal," she lied.

_Too much lying tonight! What's wrong with you, Rikku!_

"Hey, it's not like it's any of your business or anything," she added calmly, a little bit perturbed by the way he was acting.

She mentally slapped herself for the way the words came tumbling out of her mouth. She had sounded a little bit _too_ defensive. Gippal was without a doubt skeptical about what she had just told him. His face, even under the dim light, gave it all away.

"Oh, well, to answer your question then, I'm trying to buy you some time." He didn't ask her anything else.

Rikku couldn't help but clear her throat at his announcement. "Um, sorry, what did you just say?" She was genuinely surprised that he made no response to what she had just said.

Usually, he would tease her and insist that she did have feelings for Kai after making a comment like that, but instead, he had ignored it?

"Time. You know, to fix yourself up. Because, you sorta have this leaf sticking in your hair," Gippal said with amazing calm. In the darkness, she couldn't tell if he was joking or if he was serious. His voice was neutral as well.

Her hands immediately flew to her hair, and she felt the unmistakable crunchiness of a dried leaf tangled between her locks on the right side of her head. The Al Bhed beside her suddenly let out a loud laugh, bending over a bit to hold his stomach.

"I'm sorry…it's just that…well, I couldn't tell you all that in front of Kai. Wouldn't want to embarrass you in front of your crush," Gippal explained after his laughs had subsided. He let out one short chuckle again before falling silent.

Rikku simply stared back at him with shock clearly spelled out on her face. "What! He's not my crush…!"

The fact that she had chosen to reply to the crush part and not the leaf-in-her-head situation made Gippal tilt his head slightly to the side as he studied her.

She blinked and looked away for a moment, shocked and embarrassed for the second time that night.

"Hm, really?" he asked quietly, a hand in his pocket.

"Yes, really. I don't like him…in that way," Rikku protested, irritated at the way he was acting that night.

Gippal couldn't see her face all too well in the darkness, so he simply nodded to himself.

"Great, now that we're all made up again, let's get inside," he announced, a smile tugging at the edge of his mouth.

She followed after him unwillingly, but knew that she had to get inside sooner or later. Mumbling, she cursed him under her breath.

* * *

"Pops!"

Cid stood up from his seat immediately, seeing his daughter rushing over to him. She made her way over and stopped as the Yuveras came into view.

Rikku had never seen Firul and Rumminia Yuvera up close. Just by sweeping her gaze over them, the couple gave off a dignified aura that was difficult to ignore. Firul Yuvera was in his early forties, his face just barely showing signs of age. His light hair had solitary streaks of gray, but were barely visible. Rumminia appeared to be a delicate woman, but her deep green eyes were strong. She seemed to be in her mid-thirties, but looked as if she was only twenty-five or so. Age had not caught up with her yet, and her smile was warm as Rikku stopped next to Cid.

"Is this Rikku? My, isn't she a lovely young lady!" Rummminia exclaimed, her bell-like laugh filling the air.

Rikku smiled shyly and looked down at her feet.

Firul stood up, gesturing to the open seat. "Please, my dear. Have a seat."

She nodded quickly and gently sat down, paying extra attention to her manners. Glancing up momentarily, she spotted Gippal in a dark corner of the ballroom, leaning against a column. He had a glass of punch in one hand and sipped it slowly as her eyes met his. He was watching her intently.

_Strange…_

Rikku tore her gaze away from his and turned back to the couple and her father.

"So your father tells us that you're a bright young lady. Beautiful and intelligent? I'm certainly impressed," Firul smiled. He glanced over at his wife and Rumminia nodded approvingly.

"I'm very happy that you decided to come, my dear," she said.

Rikku shook her head. "Oh, it's really an honor to meet you. I've always wondered about you," she smiled softly.

Cid offered a smile to the Yuveras as well. "It took me a long time to get her to come."

Her smile faded and she tossed a shocked expression to her father. "Pops!"

The Yuveras laughed. "Well, we certainly aren't a very public family, if you know what I mean. We tend to remain in the background and avoid publicity," Firul explained. "So I wouldn't be surprised if not many people know who we are."

Rumminia nodded. "I'm afraid we don't always leave a nice impression on the Al Bhed community either," she frowned.

"I'm sure it's not that. They just…don't know you too well, that's all," Rikku offered, feeling bad for the couple.

Firul smiled warmly. "Thank you, my dear. I'm glad you feel that way."

The song suddenly changed to a slow and mellow piece, and Rikku glanced up to see couples slowly moving to the center of the room. Rumminia watched Rikku and smiled.

"Why don't you go up and enjoy the party, my dear? I'm sure you'd rather go and dance instead of staying here to chat with us."

Rikku shook her head again. "Oh, no, I'm fine. I don't really…dance," she laughed nervously at them.

"Oh, everyone dances. It's just a matter of who you dance with," Firul chuckled, turning to his wife. "Shall we?"

Rumminia stood and took his hand automatically, and the two drifted to the floor to join the others.

Rikku looked on at the couple. Despite their age, they were obviously still very much in love with each other. She watched as they danced gracefully under the low light.

"Nice dress ya got there, Rikku. Did you just buy it today or something?" Cid's rough voice interrupted her thoughts.

She nodded. "Yeah, picked it up with the help of Gippal."

Cid raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Hm, not bad. The kid's got taste in women's clothes!"

Rikku shot her father a shocked expression. "What! No, I picked it!" she exclaimed, her delicate manners suddenly gone.

Her father roared with laughter, and as he looked up, Rikku saw him wave at someone across the ballroom.

"So she finally makes an appearance. Be back later. Gotta talk to Nadhala 'bout something," Cid announced, making his way over to the dining tables. He stopped and turned back to her. "Why don't you try to find the Yuvera's son or something? I haven't met him either, y'know!"

Rikku looked after her father and sighed. After a few seconds of silence, she suddenly remembered Gippal.

Her eyes flew to where he had been standing earlier. To her surprise, he was still there. It was hard not to notice him. He could easily turn the heads of any woman at that party, and sure enough, she was right.

Rikku tried not to make it seem as if she was watching. A pretty girl in a charming deep red dress slowly went over to him. From her position, Rikku couldn't see the girl's face or Gippal's. She glanced up discreetly as she watched the girl lightly touch Gippal's arm. A few seconds later the girl walked away from him, and Rikku froze as Gippal's eyes automatically locked onto hers again.

_Oh damn. I think he saw me._

She waited for a moment, pretending to munch on some of the snacks on the tray in front of her. After some time, her eyes slowly drifted up to where Gippal was standing, and he was indeed still looking at her. Much to her surprise, he slowly walked away from his position and retreated in the shadows. She watched as he disappeared into the hallway.

Curious, she stood from her chair and followed him.

The gentle strings and soothing harp filled her ears as Rikku walked around the dancefloor, staying close to the walls. She spotted the Yuveras dancing gracefully and Cid and Nadhala had even decided to take a spin.

Her heart was racing in her chest and she didn't know why. Gippal had been staring a little too intently at her, and it had caused her heart to skip a beat.

She hurried into the hallway after him.

It was silent when she arrived. Two guards stood on either side up ahead, and another couple had just entered and walked past her towards the ballroom. Gippal was nowhere to be seen, and the low light made it even harder.

She suddenly glanced behind her, feeling strangely self-conscious. There was nobody there.

Rikku continued on undaunted, but nearly jumped out of her skin as a pair of arms grabbed onto her and she was quickly pressed into the wall in an area away from the hallway. She looked up at the face of her attacker.

"Gippal? What are you doing…!" she gasped against him.

He darted his head out into the hallway and then turned back to her, burying them deeper in the shadows.

"Ssshh, look," he whispered.

Rikku looked around him and finally saw what he was pointing to. Or rather…_who_ he was pointing to.

"Wait, that's Kai," she whispered, seeing her classmate in the hallway with another Al Bhed. "He's just with a guy. What's going on, Gippal?" Rikku asked in confusion.

He was nearly pressed up against her when the two men had passed by. When they had turned the corner, he looked back down at her.

"That guy he was with was Vynne, the Yuvera's son."

She pealed herself off the wall at that point and went back into the main hallway, Gippal following right behind her.

"That's their son?" she said curiously.

Gippal looked on. "Yeah, what'd you think?"

Rikku turned back around to him. "Hm, I don't know. Didn't really see him too well," she shrugged.

He nodded after a while. "I guess not."

They stood in awkward silence, her heart still racing a bit from how close he had been to her.

"Hey um…what was that all about, anyway?" Rikku finally asked. "Why'd you grab me like that? You're lucky you weren't someone else or I woulda given it to 'em."

He smirked, looking down at the ground momentarily. "I was trying to get you away from Vynne."

"Huh?"

"Did you see me looking at you back there?" Gippal asked, a hand on his side.

Rikku nodded slowly, remembering his intense gaze.

"He was watching you, Rikku. It was too obvious, and no one but me noticed it," Gippal informed her.

She turned back to him quickly. "You mean…you were just watching…" she trailed off before picking back up again. "Oh, I see…"

"Huh? What's the matter? Of course I meant I had been watching him. Rikku, he had his eyes on you since we got in there."

"So…why didn't Vynne just come up to me then?" she asked instead, trying to hide her unexplained disappointment.

Gippal smiled. "That's what we're gonna find out. You ready to go after him?"

"Wait, what do you plan to do, Gippal?" Rikku asked, startled that he had something planned the entire time. She felt like some character out of a spy novel or something.

"Nothing. All we're gonna do is talk to Vynne. Actually, just you," he explained. Obviously, Gippal had already thought about all this, and it puzzled Rikku.

"And what'll you do? Watch me from the shadows again?" she laughed.

He smirked.

"Yup."

* * *

**End of Chapter 4.**

Well, I hope I managed to surprise a few of you. I'll get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far. It means a lot to me!


	5. Quality Time

**Chapter 5: Quality Time**

"Ah, there you are, Vynne!"

The young man turned as he saw his mother and father walking over to him. He smiled at them immediately and strode over, bowing lightly to both of them.

"Mother, you look beautiful as always."

Rumminia smiled. Firul nodded and took a step forward.

"You're looking well, Son. I trust that you've already met Cid's daughter?" he asked.

The three of them wandered over to the head dining table and took their seats, attendants already prepared to serve them. A waiter who seemed to be in his early twenties, his blond hair neatly spiked, smiled warmly and went over to them.

"Would you like the special this evening?" he offered.

"Oh, no thank you. Perhaps later," Rumminia replied politely, waving a delicate hand.

Firul and Vynne shook their heads similarly as well. The waiter bowed lightly and stepped aside.

"No, Father. I didn't get a chance to meet her yet," Vynne finally answered, taking a sip from his glass. His father raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, but we saw both of you going into the same hallway just a minute ago," Firul commented.

"Surely you must have at least seen a young lady in a yellow dress?" Rumminia added thoughtfully.

Vynne shook his head. "No, I don't think I did…" He paused. "But maybe it's about time that I do meet her. After all, we are to be married, right?" he laughed, standing from his chair. "Where did she go? The main hallway?" He pointed in the direction of the entrance.

"Actually, Son. Cid hasn't told us what his daughter's…reply was," Firul trailed off, clearing his throat.

Vynne looked back and forth between his parents before sitting back down momentarily. "I guess I can understand. After all, I can't imagine how hard it must be for his daughter to suddenly receive this proposal."

"And, it's okay with you?" Rumminia softly spoke up.

"What's okay, Mother?"

"You don't think this is hard for you, Son? Firul inquired instead, knowing what his wife had meant.

Vynne took his glass and began slowly whirling the deep red liquid absent-mindedly. His reflection stared back at him as he looked down. "An arranged marriage isn't exactly what I had in mind either."

His parents fell silent.

"But it'll help our family. That much I'm willing to do."

Firul and Rumminia watched their son, seeing the expression on his face. He had matured drastically in the last two years. Perhaps too quickly as well.

"Cid carries a good name, Son. This marriage will allow the Al Bhed to confide in us again," Firul said after a few moments of silence had passed.

"I'm just afraid that you may have already had an eye on another young lady, darling," Rumminia sighed, concern causing small wrinkles to form around her bright eyes.

* * *

"Gippal, don't you think it'll look a little weird if I approach him _first?_"

"Nah, it's fine. Just do what we talked about, and it'll be alright," he informed her. Rikku raised an eyebrow. He seemed a little _too_ confident.

They stopped talking for a moment as another couple walked by. Rikku instantly recognized the man as one of her classmates from engineering class. Their eyes met briefly before he glanced over at Gippal.

If she had turned away at that moment, Rikku would have missed the small wink her classmate had given her. Her eyes widened at him as if silently saying that they weren't at the party together. But the twinkle in her classmate's eye easily told her that he didn't buy it. She blushed.

"Who was that?" Gippal asked curiously. He had seen the guy wink at Rikku.

"Just a classmate from Engineering."

"Oh, is that all?"

"What do you mean?" she asked defensively, seeing him smirking.

"Nothing. I just didn't know that _classmates_ made you blush," Gippal said matter-of-factly.

She froze.

_Why does he always notice those things!_

She was about to retort, but instead glanced up when something caught her eye up ahead. A familiar figure entered the hallway. She cleared her throat and turned away so that she was facing Gippal fully.

"I don't even know why I'm going along with this, but you've made me curious. Vynne's here," she whispered, forgetting what she was about to say to him earlier.

Gippal looked up over her head and nodded. "I'll be around." He turned and walked down the hallway, leaving Rikku alone.

She stalled for a moment, idly walking around as if waiting for someone. Vynne was further down the hallway, but she knew that she was in full view. He couldn't miss her.

Gippal had piqued her curiosity when they had been talking earlier. If Vynne had been watching her, perhaps he was just seeing what she was about. It didn't really surprise Rikku that Vynne hadn't approached her immediately. Maybe he really was trying to find a more appropriate opportunity to introduce himself.

But of course, Gippal didn't buy it.

He had reasoned that as her bodyguard, his senses were more refined than hers. According to Gippal, Vynne had apparently been staring at her a little _too_ intensely.

"_A glance would've been alright. But this guy had his eyes locked on you, Rikku."_

She couldn't help but shiver a little at that. The thought of a complete stranger watching her was more than just a bit unnerving. It was downright…creepy.

"Excuse me…Rikku?"

Turning around slowly, she looked up at the young man.

Dark green eyes sparkled curiously under blond bangs. His sun-kissed skin contrasted a white suit, and Rikku had to swallow in an attempt to ignore the word that she had been ready to utter.

_Whoa._

"Um, Miss?"

She blinked, smiling apologetically and composing herself. "Oh, sorry."

"You're Rikku, right?" the man asked, studying her.

Slightly surprised at his forwardness, she played along nonetheless. "Yes, and…you are?"

"Vynne Yuvera. I'm sure you've already heard about me," he said, standing with his hands behind his back. He smiled gently.

Although they had only just met, Rikku was startled at how kind his words were. He wasn't at all forceful or creepy as she expected he would be.

_So much for stereotypical rich boys. Heh. _

"Are you enjoying the party? You seem a little…lost?" Vynne asked hesitantly, chuckling a bit at her silence.

Rikku giggled, shaking her head. "Oh, no, no! It's a great party. I um…I was just taking a walk."

He nodded. "So you met my parents already?"

"Yeah, I did," Rikku replied, smiling. "They were really nice."

Vynne raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Oh, so you…came by yourself?" he continued, wondering why she had been taking a walk alone.

She was instantly reminded of the scene from earlier in the courtyard with Kai. He had asked her the same question before Gippal had showed up.

Rikku knew that Gippal was presently listening to their entire conversation.

"U-um, yeah. Sorta," Rikku responded, turning herself more fully towards Vynne.

He tilted his head curiously. "Oh?"

"I don't have a…date or anything. That's all," she clarified, waving her hands in front of her.

He began nodding in understanding. "Oh, well, neither do I."

They both laughed softly at that, Rikku awkwardly looking down at her shoes, and Vynne looking everywhere but at her.

"W-well, I should head back. I left my dad back there…" Rikku spoke up first, beginning to turn away. They had obviously run out of things to talk about, and frankly, Rikku didn't really want to entertain him further.

"Of course," Vynne nodded. She sent him a short wave before walking away.

He stood still, debating with himself for a few seconds before taking a step forward.

"Rikku!"

She paused as he called out to her.

"Maybe you'd like to go out to lunch sometime?" Vynne began hesitantly, looking away. She didn't reply at first. "To talk about everything, I mean," Vynne added, scratching the back of his head slowly. She knew that he meant the marriage proposal.

Rikku looked past Vynne and saw Gippal standing a few feet behind him, leaning against the wall. She smiled apologetically.

"I don't know if that's a good idea right now." She paused, seeing slight disappointment flash on his face. "I mean…! I…still have a few things to talk to my dad about. Sorry…" she said. Rikku decided to leave out the part regarding her final decision. She really didn't have any intention of marrying Vynne or anyone her father chose for that matter. Not after Cid had told her that he could have easily just sold the plans instead.

"Forgive my inconsideration, Rikku," Vynne replied. "Maybe some other time then?"

"Sure," she said quickly, not putting much thought into it. Rikku figured it was just a formality. Of course he wouldn't try to pursue her further.

Right?

Waving one last time, she turned and headed back into the ballroom, figuring that Gippal would meet up with her eventually.

* * *

Seeing Rikku finally leave the hallway, Gippal pushed himself off the wall and hurried after her.

He went the opposite way down the hall and turned the corner, heading into the back doors that led to the ballroom. Looking around momentarily, he quickly spotted her sitting alone in one of the tables away from the crowd. He slowed down, walking over to her.

"You…okay?" he asked hesitantly. She looked up as he approached and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Gippal sat down in the chair furthest from her and leaned back, studying her expression.

"…What?" she asked after some time had passed between them, noting his eyes on her.

"Nothing."

"You heard the whole conversation, right?" Rikku asked, glancing up momentarily to see if Vynne was around. He wasn't.

"Yup, but I was a little disappointed," Gippal admitted, waving a hand in the air.

She sighed. "He didn't mention anything about Kai. You know, what if they're just friends. That _is_ possible, Gippal."

"Yeah, but something just doesn't feel right," he said, leaning towards her and shaking his head.

Rikku laughed. "So suddenly you're an expert at this stuff? Aren't you better at being a leader?" she asked him while crossing her arms, referring to his old position as leader of the Machine Faction.

Gippal shrugged. "Doesn't mean that I can't sense when something's not right, y'know," he told her calmly, smirking.

She sighed again, resting her chin in one palm and looking away. "This whole thing's a mess. I should just go to the Yuveras, tell them 'No' and then tell Vynne that I don't want anything to do with him," Rikku said quietly.

He suddenly let out a short laugh. "What's this? Are you admitting defeat? Damn, didn't know you had it in ya!"

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Rikku demanded, returning to a sitting position.

Gippal shook his head in amusement before his expression turned serious again. "You're not even a little curious about any of this?"

She simply looked back at him in silence.

"At first, Cid says that he wants you to marry this guy so some plans can get sold. You figured out that you weren't really needed since those plans could easily be sold without you," he paused for a moment, seeing Rikku paying attention to him fully now. "I'm still being paid to be your bodyguard, even if both you and Cid know that without you, this whole New Home plan can still go through."

Rikku nodded in silence, his words echoing in her mind. Why _was_ Gippal still around? Once Cid told her that she wasn't really necessary, he should have called off the whole bodyguard thing. So, why put it off?

"I dunno 'bout you, but all this just seems strange to me," he finished, leaning back again.

"But…why? Why go through the trouble? I mean, why doesn't Pops just sell the plans and get it over with?" Rikku asked.

In reality, Gippal was just as confused as she was. He looked around the ballroom. He spotted the Yuveras dancing gracefully in the middle of a small crowd of people as everyone clapped and laughed. Moving his gaze through the area, he spotted Kai sitting at a table with another man in the dark corner. He paused on him for a moment. Gippal strained his eyes in an attempt to get a better look at the other man. It was Vynne.

"Gippal…what if I'm just being used to help the plans get sold faster?" Rikku spoke up, drawing his attention to her again.

"Huh?"

She shook her head slowly. "Think about it. The original package included me and the plan. If the Yuveras assumed that I wouldn't agree to the proposal, they would tell my dad that the plans were enough. My dad, being the dumb dad that he is, would agree to sell right away…"

"…so that he doesn't seem like the bad guy to you anymore, and so he can score big with the higher-ups no matter what. I get it now…" Gippal finished, realization crossing his features. He glanced up at where Vynne and Kai were, suddenly feeling suspicious of their surroundings. Rikku still didn't know that the other two men were sitting together across the ballroom.

"Gippal, I don't know what's going on but—"

"Hey, let's go somewhere," he suddenly interrupted, rising to his feet. Walking over to her, he gently took hold of her arm and pulled her up as well, not waiting for her reply.

"W-wait, why?" she protested, looking up at his face.

He said nothing, a firm hold on one of her wrists as he led them out. She noticed how he had deliberately avoided the main crowd and took the back route out of the mansion.

Rikku struggled to look into his face while they walked quickly down the hill and into downtown, but his expression was unreadable. Finally, she felt his pace slowing until they were walking casually. He let go of her.

"What happened? Why'd we leave so fast?" she asked. It was the first thing either of them had said since rushing out of the house.

Under the illumination of the moon, she could see him clearly now. "You need to watch out for Kai."

His sudden statement caught her off-guard.

"Gippal…! How can you say that? Don't just make accusations based on something we don't even know is going on yet!" she exclaimed, a little perturbed. Although she didn't even know Kai that well either, Rikku didn't particularly like blaming people that fast.

"Sssh, keep your voice down," he bade her quietly, raising a finger to his lips.

Rikku paused, blushing with slight embarrassment. "W-well, at least tell me why you brought Kai up then," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I saw him with Vynne again," Gippal said calmly, shrugging. He raised a hand to his hair, suddenly feeling a cold drop of water hitting his scalp. Looking up, he could see angry dark clouds quickly engulfing the pale sliver of the moon.

Rikku followed his gaze up and groaned. "Oh, man. Please don't say that there's a storm coming?"

Gippal barely had the chance to reply before a crashing sound pierced the air and they saw the first flash of light. The rain began falling in torrents almost immediately.

Squealing, Rikku broke out into a run in the direction of the houses, Gippal trailing behind her chuckling.

They stopped just outside an armor shop, the short covering just barely keeping the water away. Rikku tossed away a large chunk of dripping hair as Gippal stopped beside her. He watched as she bent down to remove her heels.

"You think it'll stop soon?" she asked him breathlessly, a hand to her chest.

He tossed his own bangs out of his eyes and shrugged. "Doesn't seem like it."

Rikku groaned again and looked up at the sky. Thick gray clouds could be seen all the way across the horizon. "Ugh, this sucks."

Gippal watched as she rubbed her arms up and down briefly before bending down in a crouching position. She remained there for a moment, rocking slightly. He removed his jacket and put it over her shoulders.

Looking up, she smiled shyly, a little embarrassed. "Thanks…."

"Yup," he replied simply, putting his hands in his pocket and turning away from her. In just his pants and button-up shirt, he peeked at the sky again. "Well, we can't stay out here. Your house is still pretty far, too," he added.

Rikku stood up, clutching his jacket around her. The bottom just barely reached her knees. "Yeah, but I should be able to make it if I run…" she trailed off, a sneeze suddenly escaping her.

He raised an eyebrow, trying to prevent the corners of his lips from curling upward. "Uh-huh."

"Shut up! I'll be fine!" she protested.

Gippal let out a laugh. He leaned on the post behind him. "My house isn't far from here, you know. Just come over and get changed. The rain'll probably be gone by then," he added, taking one last look at the sky.

She paused for a few seconds, wondering if that was such a good idea. She mentally went through the facts.

_He was her bodyguard. So doing this was part of the job._

_He didn't seem to be interested in her. She couldn't honestly say if she was interested in him either._

_He's a guy. Guys have needs._

The last statement caused her eyes to widen.

_Of course he's a guy, you idiot! And what the hell are you thinking, Rikku!_

"Whaaat…? Afraid I'll try to jump you or something?" Gippal laughed as if reading her mind, seeing her hesitation. "C'mon. Let's go."

_One other thing. I picked up few moves from Paine. One false step and he'll really get it._

As she told herself that, she suddenly felt a little more assured. Plus, her dress wasn't exactly the thickest of materials. It clung to her hopelessly, and the fabric would have given Gippal quite an eyeful if it weren't for his jacket that presently covered her.

"Fine, but don't try anything sneaky! I'll—"

"You'll what…?" he challenged with a grin, enjoying the shock on her face.

Deliberately ignoring his question, she suddenly stepped into the rain past him, calling out. "Hey, hurry up, will ya?"

He watched as she began jogging up the hill, not bothering to wait for him. Gippal shook his head again, a smile tugging at his lips as he followed after her.

"Heeey…! Do you even know how to get to my house?" he called out.

* * *

**End of Chapter 5.**

I think I like the pace of this story. I'm going to try not to rush things since character development is something I'm going to emphasize this time around. Unlike my previous fics with this pairing, I want to really take my time.

Thanks for reading, everyone! See you in the next chapter!


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